Steven Nehl/The OregonianTime to think about making that camping reservation on the Lewis River.

Some of the most sought-after campsites close to Portland become available for reservation on Sunday, March 1, when PacifiCorp opens its reservation line for Cresap Bay and Cougar Camp parks on southwest Washington's Lewis River reservoirs.

Both offer some of the closest lakeside campsites to Portland, so demand exceeds supply on weekends and holidays.

The reservation telephone line, 503-813-6666, will be open 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. March 1, then again the same hours on following weekdays. Callers will be asked to leave their name, telephone number, preferred campground and camping dates.

Pacific Power staff will return phone calls, beginning the first day of the reservation process, in the order they were received, trying twice before moving down the list. The process can take some time, so be patient.

The telephone recording system, which can handle 60 calls per minute, can get overwhelmed early in the process. When this occurs, callers will receive a message asking them to call back in a few minutes, as staff works to clear the backlog.

About 100 campsites can be reserved for the 110 days, from Memorial Day to Labor Day. Most callers want reservations for nine prime weekends, so it may be easier to get a reservation by having a flexible camping schedule.

Cancelations that occur throughout the summer are filled by staff calling people who requested reservations, but were denied during the initial period.